Imām Abū Bakr ibn al-Sunnī

Imām Abū Bakr ibn al-Sunnī (280 – 364 AH / 893 – 975 CE)

Early Life and Background

Imām Abū Bakr Aḥmad ibn Muḥammad ibn Isḥāq ibn Ibrāhīm ibn al-Sunnī al-Dīnawarī [أبو بكر أحمد بن محمد بن إسحاق بن إبراهيم بن السني الدينوري] was born around 280 AH / 893 CE in the region of Dīnawar (دينور), located in western Persia, near modern-day Kermānshāh, Iran.^1

He grew up in a period of intense scholarly activity — the generation immediately following the six canonical ḥadīth compilers. His early education reflected this environment: he memorized the Qurʾān, studied Arabic grammar, and devoted himself to the collection of prophetic traditions (ḥadīth – حديث).^2

The title “Ibn al-Sunnī” (literally, “the son of the Sunnah”) was not his family name but an honorific, earned for his devotion to transmitting and preserving the Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ.^3

Education and Teachers

From an early age, Ibn al-Sunnī showed remarkable dedication in the study of ḥadīth. He traveled widely to seek knowledge (riḥlah fī ṭalab al-ʿilm – رحلة في طلب العلم), visiting Khurasān, Nīshāpūr, Baghdad, Damascus, and Egypt — all leading centers of learning at the time.^4

Among his most renowned teachers were:

Imām al-Nasāʾī (214–303 AH) [الإمام النسائي] — from whom he learned both narration and methodology;^5
Abū Jaʿfar al-Ṭaḥāwī (239–321 AH) [أبو جعفر الطحاوي];
Muḥammad ibn Ismāʿīl al-Bukhārī’s students, particularly those active in Syria;
and other hadith critics and jurists of the 3rd and 4th centuries AH.

Under al-Nasāʾī’s tutelage, he refined his precision in isnād (chains of transmission – الإسناد), his knowledge of narrator evaluation (ʿilm al-rijāl – علم الرجال), and his balanced approach between textual rigor and devotional reflection.^6

Scholarly Career

After completing his studies, Ibn al-Sunnī settled primarily in Baghdad and Damascus, where he taught hadith and compiled works on worship, ethics, and remembrance of God.
He quickly became known for his devotional ḥadīth collections — texts intended not merely for scholars, but for the spiritual life of the everyday Muslim.^7

He was respected as both a ḥadīth transmitter (muḥaddith – محدث) and a spiritual teacher (zāhid – زاهد). His students admired his humility and his ability to blend precise transmission with heartfelt spirituality.^8

Major Works

Work	Arabic Title	Subject	Notes
ʿAmal al-Yawm wa al-Laylah	عمل اليوم والليلة	Supplications and acts of worship	His most famous work. A concise devotional collection organizing the Prophet’s daily routine — prayers, adhkār, duʿāʾ, sleep, waking, eating, and travel.^9
Faḍāʾil al-Aʿmāl	فضائل الأعمال	Virtues of deeds	Covers merits of prayer, fasting, recitation, and charity, emphasizing sincerity (ikhlāṣ – إخلاص).
ʿAmal al-Safar	عمل السفر	Acts and supplications of travel	Focused on the Prophet’s etiquette when traveling — shorter companion to ʿAmal al-Yawm wa al-Laylah.
Kitāb al-Duʿāʾ	كتاب الدعاء	General collection of supplications	A supplement to his other devotional texts. Portions were later cited by al-Nawawī in al-Adhkār.^10

Methodology and Style

Imām Ibn al-Sunnī’s scholarship reflects a post-canonical devotional turn in hadith writing.
Whereas earlier compilers such as al-Bukhārī and Muslim focused on legal and doctrinal authenticity, Ibn al-Sunnī focused on living the Sunnah — how Muslims could embody prophetic manners in daily practice.^11

His ʿAmal al-Yawm wa al-Laylah is arranged by time and context — from dawn until night, including acts like:

entering the mosque,
eating and drinking,
entering the home,
greeting others,
and before sleeping.

Each narration is accompanied by minimal commentary and direct chains, reflecting his teacher al-Nasāʾī’s style of concise transmission.^12

He often uses phrases such as:

“It is reported that the Messenger of God ﷺ would say upon waking…”
— demonstrating his preference for living tradition over theoretical classification.

Reputation Among Scholars

Later hadith masters recognized Ibn al-Sunnī as a trustworthy transmitter (thiqa – ثقة) and reliable compiler.
Al-Dhahabī (d. 748 AH) wrote in Siyar Aʿlām al-Nubalāʾ:

“He was a man of worship and knowledge, truthful, precise, and sincere.”^13

Ibn Ḥajar al-ʿAsqalānī also praised him, citing his narrations frequently in al-Tahdhīb and al-Isābah.^14
His works influenced later devotional scholars such as:

Imām al-Nawawī (631–676 AH) in al-Adhkār;
Ibn al-Qayyim (691–751 AH) in al-Wābil al-Ṣayyib;
and the compilers of later adhkār manuals throughout the Muslim world.^15

Martyrdom and Death

According to biographical accounts, Ibn al-Sunnī spent his later life in Baghdad and continued teaching until his tragic death in 364 AH / 975 CE.^16
Some sources report that he was attacked by political agitators who resented his public readings and his emphasis on ʿAlī’s virtues — echoing the fate of his teacher al-Nasāʾī decades earlier.^17
He died as a martyr (shahīd – شهيد), steadfast in his devotion to the Sunnah and its spiritual practice.

He was buried in Baghdad, where his students and followers continued to teach his works for generations.^18

Legacy

Imām Abū Bakr ibn al-Sunnī stands as a bridge between critical hadith scholarship and spiritual devotion.
His legacy lies not in massive encyclopedic compilations, but in the inner revival of prophetic remembrance.
By transmitting the Prophet’s everyday sunnah — how he spoke, ate, smiled, and prayed — Ibn al-Sunnī helped shape Muslim spirituality across centuries.

Through him, the Sunnah became not only a scholarly record, but a living rhythm of remembrance — a legacy that survives in the morning and evening adhkār of Muslims worldwide.

References

Encyclopaedia of Islam, 2nd ed., s.v. “Ibn al-Sunnī.”
Jonathan A.C. Brown, Hadith: Muhammad’s Legacy in the Medieval and Modern World (Oxford: Oneworld, 2009), 76.
The Muslim Vibe, “A Short Biography of Imam Abu Bakr Ibn al-Sunni,” accessed October 2025.
IslamicFinder.org, “Biography of Ibn al-Sunni,” accessed October 2025.
Al-Dhahabī, Siyar Aʿlām al-Nubalāʾ, vol. 16 (Beirut: Muʾassasat al-Risālah, 1982), 390.
Ibn Ḥajar al-ʿAsqalānī, Tahdhīb al-Tahdhīb, vol. 1 (Cairo: Dār al-Maʿārif, 1968), 58.
Encyclopaedia of Islam, 2nd ed.
Al-Dhahabī, Siyar, vol. 16, 391.
Sunnah.com, “ʿAmal al-Yawm wa al-Laylah by Ibn al-Sunni,” accessed October 2025.
Al-Nawawī, al-Adhkār (Cairo: Dār al-Salām, 1996), Introduction.
Brown, Hadith, 77.
Ibn Ḥajar, Tahdhīb al-Tahdhīb, 59.
Al-Dhahabī, Siyar, vol. 16, 392.
Ibn Ḥajar, Tahdhīb al-Tahdhīb, 60.
Al-Nawawī, al-Adhkār, Preface.
Ibn Kathīr, al-Bidāyah wa al-Nihāyah, vol. 11 (Cairo: Dār al-Fikr, 1986), 260.
Al-Dhahabī, Siyar, vol. 16, 393.
Encyclopaedia of Islam, 2nd ed.